Lötschental: around thirty residents able to return home
Keystone-SDA
Around thirty residents were able to return to their homes following a landslide from the Birch glacier that destroyed nearby homes in the Blatten region.
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Some homes in nearby Ferden, Kippel and Wiler were evacuated as a precautionary measure on 29 May.
The evacuation notice for the Wiler shopping area has also been lifted. “The increased risk of massive and uncontrolled lateral erosion along the bed of the Lonza brook no longer exists”, said the Lötschental command staff in a press release. However, arrangements remain in place for any evacuation.
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Tourists will also be allowed back into the valley from Saturday. The Lötschental regional command centre has announced that the closure of the road from Goppenstein for non-residents and tourists will be lifted from 11pm on Friday.
However, the whole of the municipality of Blatten, including the hiking trails, will remain closed.
On Thursday, residents of the Blatten hamlets of Eisten and Weissenried were able to return to their homes for an hour.
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Translated from French by DeepL/mga
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